CEO Bob Iger To Be With the Walt Disney Company for Two Years
Bob Iger returned to The Walt Disney Company as CEO (ousting former CEO Bob Chapek) in November 2022, and recently he led the earnings call for the first quarter of 2023.
The company announced revenue exceeding Wall Street estimates, with an overall revenue totaling $23.51 billion, and Iger’s plans for reorganization and cutting costs even led activist investor Nelson Peltz to end his proxy fight.
On Returning to The Walt Disney Company
During an interview with CNBC, Iger was asked about his return as Disney’s CEO, and Iger explained that the Chairman of the Board, Susan Arnold, called him just a few days before the change in CEO was announced. In fact, he received the call on Friday and he was back at work that Monday!
Iger was not looking for a job nor was he anticipating being asked to return as Disney’s CEO, but Arnold explained that it was a time of need and that the Board was interested in making a change at the CEO level.
When asked why he ultimately agreed to return to The Walt Disney Company, Iger said he “had a sense of obligation.” He added, “I wanted to help them not only transform the company during a pretty critical time but I wanted to help them succeed at succession.”
How Long Iger Will Serve as CEO
As of right now, Bob Iger will serve as Disney’s CEO for two years. He said, “Well, my plan is to stay here for two years, that’s what my contract says, that was my agreement with the Board, and that is my preference.”
When asked whether he thinks that two-year timeline may change in the future, Iger noted that he’s about to turn 72 and that there are “other things in life that I’d like to do.” He also expressed confidence “that the Board will be able to identify an able successor” within the next two years.
Iger stated, “You can make a lot of changes very quickly,” and that two years should be enough time to see through some of the plans announced during the first quarter earnings call for 2023.
Iger said he plans on “setting the company up for long-term success,” which includes setting “it on the right course for what could be many years.”
How Iger Found The Walt Disney Company
Iger was asked whether he found the state of the company surprising upon his return. He said, “I was aware of some of the issues that the company was dealing with” and that it has been a “challenging time for many companies.”
Overall, however, he found the state of the company “as expected.”
He added, “I was close enough in terms of my observer status to get a sense of what was going on.”
Iger’s Thoughts on Bob Chapek
When asked about former CEO Bob Chapek, who Iger unexpectedly replaced in November 2022, he said, “We thought we made the right decision when we chose Bob back in 2020. The Board decided in November he was not the right person for the job and they made a change. With any big decision, you should learn from what went wrong.”
He declined to comment further.
You can watch Bob Iger’s interview with CNBC’s Squawk on the Street below!
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